Cooking

The professional chef can work in a wide range of establishments including high-class restaurants, hotels, welfare caterings such as hospitals and residential homes, theme parks and industrial sites; providing catering services to guests and staff.

The chef in a top-tier hotel or restaurant offering fine dining will need to demonstrate outstanding skills in food preparation and its presentation. They will be expected to create and adapt dishes that meet the expectations of demanding customers who are used to dining in exclusive restaurants.

Fashions and trends in cuisine fluctuate so it is important that the top class chef keeps abreast of these trends and adapts their product and service accordingly. Strict maintenance of the highest personal and food hygiene and safety are paramount at all times.

As well as the skill of cooking, the role of a chef will also demand further skills that relate to cooking in a commercial setting such as menu compilation, food costing, purchasing, storage, and utilization of food commodities and their control, work/time management, planning, communication and managing a kitchen brigade.

With globalization of cuisine, chefs can work with talent, inspiration, ingredients, and in establishments all over the world. The pressures in this field are great, but the opportunities are nearly endless; and the potential for career advancement is ever present.